Happy Independence Day!

This was my first 4th of July celebration as an American.

Below are the fireworks as seen from our rooftop:

Jury Duty

It has only been seven months since I became a U.S. citizen, and here I am already being summoned to perform one of the civic/civil obligations. I know of several people who have never been called. I looked forward to becoming an American mainly for the blue passport and for the right to vote in 2008, but did not look forward to jury duty. Well, I called in every morning of every day this week to check-in, but, fortunately for Paris Hilton, never got called as a juror. LOL

I'm dreaming of a "Blue" Christmas

I finally got my "blue" U.S. passport! I was so excited to open the package to see my Naturalization Certificate again. I had to surrender it, soon after I just got it during my oath- taking, so I could immediately apply for my passport. The only downer is that unlike my certificate which has my name spelled perfectly, my passport has my name spelled with an "H"! Grrrr...I wonder who could be that passport agent assigned to my application that was careless enough not to proof-read his/her work? Now I cannot just get up and leave the country if ever I wanted/needed to/could and will have to go through the process of having it corrected.
F+_)(*&^%$#@K!..."they" never make it easy for me.
Please click HERE for the New Travel Requirements involving Americans and/or travel in/out of the U.S.A..

All you have to do is dream

I will admit, for the purpose of this post, I have done drag a total of 8 times in the early 90's. Some were for Halloween, and some were for the mere fun of it and/or providing entertainment during a "happy" party/workshop. During two occasions, I played one of the Dreams, utilizing only newspapers, curtains, and bed sheets for our costumes. At that time, several years ago, not a whole lot of people, including some of my gay friends, were familiar with this Broadway Musical.
This very same time last X'mas 1997, I lost my first job in the U.S. (The sweatshop that was sponsoring me for my work visa, got sued by a former employee, which brought them to the attention of the EDD. By coincidence, it was time for my final papers to be signed and submitted. My employer refused since she wanted to avoid any other dealings with the EDD, therefore jeopardizing my entire labor certification application. After almost 2 years of working for small change, enduring a 2-hour 3-bus ride per way commute, and paying thousands of dollars in immigration lawyer fees...now all of a sudden everything I sacrificed went down the drain.) I was devastated...
Bill decided to cheer me up and surprised me by getting tickets to the show, Dreamgirls. He was not familiar with the show and suddenly wondered why there were so many gay men at the lobby. I couldn't help but laugh and told him to wait after the show. As soon as the opening number started, he immediately understood why. I was cracking up and came out of there feeling better and knew that what happened earlier that day wasn't the end of my world. (Someone could have told me then that 9 years later, this struggle will only be a memory.)
Last year, my company had acquired the much coveted entertainment account of DreamWorks SKG. Just for this account alone, we had to get a bigger office and hire new agents. One of the projects that was in production was Dreamgirls, the movie. Alas, when Paramount finally bought DreamWorks, losing this major account was inevitable. So I guess I couldn't blame my former contacts for not mailing me my promised invitation to the premiere. So much for having connections in Hollywood...LOL.
If you can't wait till X'mas day or for the earlier release at selected theaters, here are two funny clips that may make you wonder if there is an even bigger talent than Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Jennifer Holiday, or Diana Ross.
Presenting WonderRobbie:

One Night Only

And I Am Telling You (I Am Not Going)

It's official...soy un Americano!

Thanksgiving and Christmas

came early for me this year...

Finally, after 4241 days or
11 years, 7 months, and 9 days,
since I landed on U.S. soil,
with the intention of
permanently residing in the States,
I am now an American citizen!!!

My journey began when my Vietnamese prostitute mother, who managed to escape from the clutches of her Eurasian pimp, decided to give me up , so that I could have the chance for a better life in America. As Saigon burned and fell, she hurriedly handed me to an American G.I. soldier and pleaded to take me on board his helicopter. It proved to be a shaky escape and the turbulent flight caused me to be propelled outside the chopper and I fell out on to the sea. After several hours, I was then rescued by a boat filled with other fleeing refugees. Sadly, our boat sank when she hit an iceberg. I narrowly escaped drowning when someone flung me on top of an over-inflated tire interior. I floated across the ocean, paddling away from Havana hoping to land in Miami...but I somehow ended up in Mexico. Giving up every dollar my father had saved from the sale of our carabaos to some local "coyotes", just so that I could be smuggled by them into the States. They had me crawl my way through a small tunnel underground crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. Along with my newfound Hispanic friends, we ran across the unforgiving desert and fortunately were missed by the U.S. border patrol. Eventually, I made it to East L.A., sold fruits by the freeway, and slowly worked my way to the "waspy" Westside.
Oops...okay...okay...my juiced-up overactive imagination got the best of me and I once again got carried away.

My story was not that dramatic, but nevertheless was almost just as challenging...
As a son of an airline man, I was able to travel for free and visit the U.S.A. from my homeland, the Philippines, practically any summer I wanted. That was what America was to me...just a place to visit relatives and perhaps visit Mickey. I never dreamed or imagined that I would one day want to live in the United States. Had my parents been able to foresee the future, then my Mom could have easily come here and have given birth to me on U.S. soil. My Dad had two opportunities to become a U.S. citizen even before I was born, but never saw any reason to pursue it. When President Clinton signed the bill to make WWII veterans automatic citizens, my Dad decided to go for it for my sake. But alas, I was already over the cut-off age. Had it happened before my 21st birthday, then I would have automatically become a U.S. citizen along with my father.

Unlike millions of altruistic people from other developing countries, who make the sacrifice of leaving their homeland and everything behind, in search of a better life for themselves and their families, the catalyst that drove me to leave the Philippines was pretty lame. At a quarter of a century old, I found myself with a new job and a new love. A little more than four months later, all within the same day, before the first full weekend of the New Year 1995, I found myself all of a sudden jobless and single. I was fired from my job since my performance suffered due to spending so much of my energy on traveling back and forth from Manila to Hong Kong to feed this relationship. I was young and naive and made the mistake of having a long distance affair with someone who apparently was not worthy of my love. I discovered that my relationship had betrayed me by having dangerous liaisons with two other so-called friends of mine. Call it triple jeopardy or my own private soap opera. I was devastated and depressed for the next three months. I then knew that I needed a change of environment to get out of this rut. So I decided to use my very last free international airline ticket to take me across the Pacific Ocean to the U.S.A.. Yes, I was not "fresh off the boat"... I flew, first class delivery, no less...LOL. I was filled with champagne wishes and caviar dreams with only a pocket full of change and a "Hollywood or Bust" kind of attitude. I was full of excitement, even if it meant looking forward to a life without my nanny and maids...LOL

Even as I landed in Hawaii, I never had a clue that the next few years would be the most humbling experience of my lifetime. It was a struggle, but I believe it built my character. I've already given too much information (again), so I will just skip the sordid details. My family and most of my closest friends know what I had to go through to reach this point. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my family and all my friends. I would like to especially thank some very special people who were an integral part of this journey: Paul T., who gave me an Aloha welcome during my stay in Hawaii; Carlos G. for taking care of me while I was in San Francisco and giving me the skills to survive in Amerika, such as how to cook rice and Filipino dishes; Jerz, for being like a "mother" away from home; Jesse Z. for showing me how hard work in Amerika pays off; Phillip G. for offering me a sofa to sleep on during my time in San Francisco; my twin cousin Robin and my relatives in Redwood City; Jojo S. for our joint venture in CiBa; my sweetie for giving me the key to my dreams; and last but not the least, my Bill, who saved me in more ways than he will ever know. Oh I guess, I should also thank my former employers at the sweatshops and the immigration lawyers, who gave me the opportunity to contribute to their children's college funds...LOL

My oath taking happened sooner than expected. It was held at the Fairplex in Pomona, California, which is like 50 miles away from home. USCIS, never seems to want to make it easy for me. My appointment was at 8AM. In spite of the fact that we left the house very early, we were late due to inaccurate mapquest directions and over-congested traffic.
I figured that there would be several Filipinos, and therefore could relax at the big possibility that I wasn't the only one running on "Filipino time"...LOL.
There were 3025 people who were going to be naturalized in my batch. The top five biggest ethnic groups who were going to become Americans that morning were from 1. Mexico, 2. Philippines, 3. El Salvador, 4. Iran, 5. Vietnam. Mexico has always beaten the Philippines in this game.
Two days later, Philippines would beat Mexico, only this time it would be in the super featherweight boxing match, where my countryman, Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao knocked-out Erik "El Terrible" Morales III on the third round.
Oh I digressed...anyway...back to me...LOL.
I didn't foresee that it was going to be such an emotional moment for me. When the judge started swearing us in and told all of us that she was keenly aware of how long most of us have waited for this day to come, and the hardships that most of us had to endure and overcome...I started to shed a tear and balanced it on my right cheek and dabbed it as it hit my right dimple...LOL.
Bill, my friend Jojo S., who was visiting from Manila, and his mother, Tita Mely, were there to share this joyous moment with me. I was very happy!
I found it funny when they announced, "You can choose to change your name legally, if it is too long, too hard to pronounce...", and I found it ironic when they continued by saying, "...or if you want it to sound more American." More American!..what is that supposed to mean?...You just told us we were now Americans...LOL.
The lady who handed my certificate was an African American, and she said, "Oh, how nice, you legally changed your Japanese name to that of Puff Daddy's!". I had to tell her, "No madame, I am not Japanese, and that is indeed my real name...I am the original Sean John, since I am older than P. Diddy by 73 days!".
Now that I am an American, I can be arrested for lewd conduct or indecent exposure, and no longer have the fear of being deported...LOL. (just kidding, mother!)
I continue to pray for several family & friends of mine, who are not yet fully settled or do not have their papers in order. Hang in there...your time will come soon...I know it will.
Coming to America made me appreciate and value my Philippine heritage, identity, history, culture, and food, etc., even more.
I will always be proud to be a Filipino and do miss my homeland, but at least, as a citizen of the U.S.A., I now can contribute to the future of the place I now have called home.

Among the sea of U.S. flag-waiving former second-class citizens,

now my fellow Americans

WANTED
Newbie U.S. CitizenWanted: for jury duty.
Wanted: by The Republican Party.
(They need your vote now more than ever.)
Wanted: to bear arms for the misguided war in Iraq.

My U.S. Citizenship Exam/Interview

Thanks to short-term memory, I now know more of U.S. history and government than most native-born Americans, and/or those raised and educated in this country!
I passed my U.S. citizenship exam with flying colors of red, white, & blue and got a perfect score!

The immigration officer who conducted my exam/interview was a fellow Filipino, but unfortunately, instead of being nice, turned our to be a big jerk.
Blame it on "crab mentality", I guess.
He questioned me with a cloud of suspicion from the very get-go.
It's a good thing I was quite confident with my responses,
and my memory of my past answers and details served me well. I was nothing like the nervous wreck that I was during my greencard interview more than five years ago...LOL.

He then asked me if I was interested in changing my name legally. Hmmm...Sean Gates or Sean Buffett doesn't sound bad for an Ameican name, I thought for a very brief moment...
Nah...my family would never forgive me. Besides, never say never, there is still that chance that I may be able to sire a son one day who will carry on my family name.

For the English speaking/writing test, I was flabbergasted to be asked to write the very simple sentence, "I enjoy going shopping everyday." Gosh...and here I was ready to recite the Gettysburg Address to him.
I was also as ready as any bad American Idol hopeful, to belt out The Star-Spangled Banner. Apparently, it wasn't a requirement...LOL.

After passing all the requirements, I was then informed that my oath taking will be scheduled for 25OCT. Shucks! I told him I couldn't make it, since I am due to be back from my vaca-sean in Indochina on 27OCT. I requested if I could be rescheduled on the next one.
He taunted me by asking, "Why don't you cancel your trip?, What is more important, being a U.S. citizen or your vacation?!...Okay, I will indicate here that you don't want to take the oath!"
No, it's not that I don't, but rather I can't, sir!, I politely but firmly responded.
"Well, this can create a problem for your application and it might take another six months to a year before you get a notice.", he further teased. It seemed like this man was in the mood to try to push my buttons, so I played it cool.
Oh well, I'll just have to wait for the next scheduled oath taking.
Hopefully it happens before the general elections on 07NOV.

It is so ironic...one of the reasons I wanted so badly to become a U.S. citizen a.s.a.p., aside from having the right to vote, was so that I could travel with a blue U.S. passport, to avoid visa requirements to most world travel destin-a-SEANs.
And here I am going to travel using my newly renewed Philippine passport to go visit Vietnam & Cambodia, both of which do not require a visa for citizens of the Philippines and other ASEAN na-seans. Bill and my other American friends/travel companions, on the other hand, are required to have one for each.
So it worked out perfectly in the end.

The American-iza-SEAN of moi is near!

Leaving my mark in "Amerika"

I apparently received a one-week notice for an appointment to have my fingerprinting done in connection with my U.S. citizenship application, during the period that I was out of town. By the time I opened the letter, the date had already passed and now I was at risk of having my application delayed even further. I immediately wrote a letter of complaint to the USCIS, explaining why I missed it, that they should have given me a more advanced notice, and that they therefore should now expedite my application. I marched to the nearest immigration application center ready to do battle. I was surprised to be greeted by a friendly clerk, who simply said, "Well you're in luck, today is a slow day, and we can take you right this moment".
I imagined with the modern infra-red photo-technology, this was going to be a quick, clean and painless procedure. I was wrong. It took an average of seven swipes per finger to get a good read. I could see the officer was getting frustrated as she painfully kept wiping my finger with a wet cloth to moisten it. She then asked me, "What kind of work do you do?!?". Oh boy, I knew what she was actually trying to say behind that question. She meant that the reason my prints were not registering properly is perhaps due to my hands seemingly being drier than that of a common farmer's daughter. I came to America with skin as soft as a baby's butt. Now after 11 years of life in America without affordable household help; I am only left with a memory of my once soft and smooth hands. The officer had to ask a supervisor to approve my fingerprint readings and override the system to finally accept them as passable. I was so apologetic to them. They eventually gave me a smile to appease my embarrassment. I hollered back at them, "I swear, I moisturize my hands at least 6 times a day!". Not realizing then that I sounded more like a horny teenager confessing that he has been up to no good...LOL.

Binational Gay Couples in US in Immigration Bind

I am one half of a binational couple. I am Filipino and my life partner is American. There was a time in the early years of our relationship and of my life in the U.S. that I was constantly plagued by the fear that we would have to be separated one day due to the current immigration policy that does not extend the same legal rights to binational gay relationships as they do with married binational heterosexual couples. There are a lot of same sex couples who are in this quandary, including several friends of mine. In due time I was lucky enough to get my immigration status in order and was able to legally continue living my life in the States with my partner. But most are not so fortunate. My heart goes out to my brothers and sisters in the community who are in this predicament. Here's hoping that one day things will change and proper legislation will rectify this gross inequity!

Please click HERE for more details.

A Day Without Immigrants

Un Dia Sin Inmigrantes
Primero de Mayo 2006

No, I didn't boycott work and still went to the office on this day.
Since my office is right in the heart of downtown,
I decided to spend my lunch break with my fellow immigrants.

Regardless of were you stand on the issues,
one thing if very clear to me,
"There is no easy answer or solution
to this immigration problem in the U.S.!"

There seems to be more attention given to those who crossed from south of the border, and less to those that flew or sailed several thousands of miles to get here. I am one of those people.
There were several times in my early years on this shaky ground,
where I almost became like most of them - illegal.
I know how it feels not knowing where you belong, and trying to prove you belong.
I paid my dues and fortunately with the grace of God, family, friends, employers, and immigration lawyers, I never did become one.
Very soon within this year, after 11 years since I left my homeland, I will finally become a citizen of this nation of immigrants.

Here are some of the interesting sights and banners that I saw:

The march started at the corner Broadway and Olympic.
I entered it via the corner of 6th & Broadway.

My gay boss and I started chanting,
"We're Here!, We're Queer!", "Allow Gays to Marry!"
Opps, wrong parade.
That's why we only saw a lot of green, orange, red, white, and blue colors.
No yellow, indigo, and violet colors of the rainbow.
I knew it that was too early in the year for Gay Pride Celebration!

I called Bill, and he jokingly told me to conduct an experiment:
Shout, "Go back to your country!" and see what happens.
Obviously, I was able to write this post, so that means I didn't do it. LOL

I helped this boy get up on this electrical box.
I should have told him the proper way to hold the U.S. flag.
That "FOR LEASE" sign is not his.
He does want to stay and not be returned
after you are done with his services.

Here they come! Get out of their way!






It did not say RSVP on the Statue of Liberty


We are America! Stop blaming us for what we are not



Downtown Los Angeles Skyline

***

One of my friends posted this letter written by a Filipino entitled,
"A Day Without Filipinos".
Click HERE to read it on his blog.

***

President Bush addresses the nation
and acknowledges the problem...

My Greencard Interview

This is the Moment!
(from Jekyll & Hyde - The Musical)
I obviously didn't compose this, but the words to this song captured exactly how I felt on this day,
my Greencard Interview
05 March 2001


This is the moment!
This is the day,
When I send all my doubts and demons
On their way!

Every endeavor,
I have made - ever -
Is coming into play,
Is here and now - today!

This is the moment,
This is the time,
When the momentum and the moment
Are in rhyme!

Give me this moment -
This precious chance -
I'll gather up my past
And make some sense at last!

This is the moment,
When all I've done -
All the dreaming,
Scheming and screaming,
Become one!

This is the day -
See it sparkle and shine,
When all I've lived for
Becomes mine!

For all these years,
I've faced the world alone,
And now the time has come
To prove to them
I've made it on my own!

This is the moment -
My final test -
Destiny beckoned,
I never reckoned,
Second Best!

I won't look down,
I must not fall!
This is the moment,
The sweetest moment of them all!

This is the moment!
Damn all the odds!
This day, or never,
I'll sit forever
With the gods!

When I look back,
I will always recall,
Moment for moment,
This was the moment,
The greatest moment
Of them all!